SMS Arminius in 1/2400th

Having broken my converted model of SMS Grille and discarded my converted model of SMS Prinz Adalbert, which was a bit rough and ready, I thought I'd replace them with a model of the Prussian turret ironclad SMS Arminius. This was a very straightforward job involving the Tumbling Dice model of HMS Scorpion, of which I had a spare casting, with just the main mast removed. The Arminius was slightly shorter than the Scorpion but in other respects is a spot on match, so an ideal addition to the Prussian flotilla. Unfortunately, she didn't see action in 1864 as she hadn't been commissioned but she did sortie out against the French blockading fleet several times in 1870, albeit without any actual action. It's a great 'what if?' however, especially if I can somehow convert models for the other three Prussian ironclads in the Franco Prussian War.

French Later Ironclads

I've packed up my 1/2400th scale Napoleonic British ship models today to take on holiday but had a little space in the box, so I've bunged in a selection of later ironclads for the French c1875-1885 or thereabouts from the Tumbling Dice Victorian naval range. They are not quite as weird as the subsequent French pre-dreadnoughts but you can see how it all ended up the way that it did!

Prussian Ships for the Battle of Jasmund 1864

This is my painting project for the next few days, a selection of Prussian warships and gunboats for the Battle of Jasmund in March 1864, together with the Danish frigate Sjaelland, all in 1/2400th scale. These are Tumbling Dice proxy models, as the Hallmark converted royal yacht Grille had to be sent to the repair yard after one of the masts broke off. The gunboats are all completely the wrong design, if not the right size compared to the actual ships, but they will do as I doubt anyone will notice. I'm aiming to get them finished by the end of the week, given some free time and a fair wind!

Mimi and Toutou

I'm reading this at the moment, having been inspired by Matt's Steamer Wars project on his excellent Shell Splash blog. This is my sideline project for the summer holidays, assuming my order from Tumbling Dice arrives before we leave for France. I already have a few of the 1/600 scale Tumbling Dice coastal warfare models, so have just topped up with the specific boats involved on Lake Tanganyika. I also have a cunning plan to convert some 1/600 WW1 aircraft into Short 827 seaplanes for the Belgians, if I can pull that off? The rules will be Steamer Wars, which I also already have, so this is a very low cost, low maintenance holiday project. Perfect!

Give Us The Ships Review

In January, I set out my plans for naval wargaming in 2020, continuing my successful strategy over the last couple of years. It's now half way through the year and I've had a look at progress to date, which has been less than spectacular despite some things being ticked off the list. As a result, I've decided to re-focus my project plans so that the latter half of the year sees some projects finished.

http://jimswargamesworkbench.blogspot.com/2020/01/happy-new-year.html

The top three projects will stay in place, as the focus of my workbench modelling and painting this year. These are:

1. 1/2400th scale Prussian, Danish and Austrian ironclads for 1864 (40% complete)

2. 1/2400th scale Napoleonic Naval French and British fleets (25% complete)

3. 1/2400th scale French and British Pre-Dreadnoughts (25% complete)

I'm hoping to get more of the 1864 ships painted this week, while the British Napoleonic ships will now be the assembly and basing project for the Summer holidays in France, having done the same for the French last year. The Royal Navy pre-dreadnoughts will probably also be taken along and glued together at the same time. I enjoyed assembling the Tumbling Dice models while away, so it's a good use of the downtime.

The three projects on the bottom of the list will be mothballed, cleared away and sent to the loft as they are very unlikely to even get a look in. I'll pack them away until I've completed the three 1/2400th scale projects, which I'm aiming to get done by the end of the year. I do have one other secret project that I'm thinking of squeezing in, however, as it isn't very time consuming or expensive. 

Back of Beyond Battle Photos

I introduced my son to  an al fresco game of Contemptible Little Armies in the Back of Beyond today, with the Bolshevik Third Workers and Peasants Shock Brigade attempting to capture an oil well from the Texaco Expedition. I set up the scenario as a Meeting Engagement to keep it simple but I did give the Texans a ruined building as light cover from the Red's field gun artillery and big scary tank. The game was a bit disjointed, as we were interrupted several times but in the end we played at least a dozen turns, resulting in a Bolshevik victory on points but a Texan victory on units routed or destroyed. I haven't got time for a full write up, so here are some pictures to show you how it all played out.

The usually useless Schneider CA1 tank did surprisingly well, lasting until the final turn when it broke down, but the improvised and unarmoured vehicles of the Texans did their usual chocolate teapot impression, apart from one which went the full distance. The Bolsheviks lost two infantry units routed and the Cheka suffered heavy casualties, as well as having the field gun crew machine gunned in the final turn. The White Russians and Texan Oilers only lost a couple of figures each, so got off very lightly. In the end, the Reds failed to capture the oil well but the Texans will have to walk home, having lost almost all of their vehicles, so a tactical draw of sorts (at least that's what Comrade Commander Igor Tubugerov will put in his report).

Chinese Warlord Armour Support

Here's one I made earlier!

I have a old resin Force of Arms FT-17 tank for my Chinese Warlord army but really fancy something with a bit more presence on the battlefield, as the FT-17 is really tiddly. I already have a lovely HLBS Schneider CA1 tank for my Bolshevik army, which looks very impressive but has consistently bogged down or blown up both times I've used it. Not to be put off, I've decided to get another one for His Excellency Bao Tsin Shek to show off with, although I'll have to pay 100 points for it rather than the 70 that the FT-17 costs. I've also decided to use an Austin armoured car rather than an Erhardt, saving the latter for my Turkish army, if that ever sees a lick of paint?

Onward to INWARD 2020

I'm spending the next two weeks preparing some new models for a game on International Naval Wargaming Day on the 6th August. The choice is between the 1/2400th scale French and British predreadnougts or Prussian steam and screw warships for the Battle of Rugen. I'll make my decision today, then get cracking! 

Beja Army Finished...well almost

I have now completed the painting on the last two units of the Beja field force for The Men Who Would Be Kings, giving me a full twenty four points of tribal and irregular infantry. I haven't finished the artillery unit yet but that's an optional extra and I have finished the sabot base at least. The tufts are a bit too big and don't look quite right, so I may well replace them with better ones when I can find something suitable. I now only have to assemble, texture and paint the sabot bases for the infantry units and I'm ready for a game, albeit without any opposition just yet. For a quick slap it on and hope for the best project, I'm quite pleased with the end result even if I say it myself, especially as it only took exactly a month to complete!

Chinese Warlord Armoured Train?

I dug out my half finished Bolshevik armoured train from the back of the garden shed today, the aptly named Comrade Legoripov, to see if I could salvage some bits to make a Chinese Warlord version. I wasn't happy with the size of the carriages that I scratch built, as they looked a bit overscale, but I'm having second thoughts. I quite like the idea of building some new, slightly smaller carriages to use with the existing locomotive and tender but in a design that looks more like the ex-White armoured trains that the various Chinese Warlords acquired. I need to raid the kids Lego collection again!